James

Some kids will do anything to prevent themselves from going to school.  James’s method was to act out and get suspended.  He would fight with other children, ignore his teachers’ requests, and disrupt classrooms. James was like a furious hurricane but hidden in the eye of his storm are his learning disabilities and the emotional issues they caused.

Because his emotional problems were the most prevalent problem at the time, and most responsible for his school conduct, he was classified as Emotionally Disabled. [To receive special education services, a student must be classified under one of the 13 disability categories in the federal law, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.]

James was placed in a small class with only eight children, which also provided therapeutic support.  Still, James continued to act out. As a result of his continued behavior problems, a behavior intervention plan was put in place. A behavior intervention plan is not a discipline plan; instead it identifies the need behind the problem behavior and then plans how to teach the student more appropriate ways to address that need. Still, James continued to act out resulting in a series of suspensions.  This is when Student Advocacy was brought in to help.

The district had suggested that James and his mother begin to consider out-of-district programs that could provide him with more support, and a Student Advocacy Educational Advocate, Jean Lucasey, agreed. At first, James’ mother was very hesitant about sending him out of district.  She had a poor relationship with the school district after all of her son’s suspensions and didn’t trust their recommendation.  Jean helped explain all of the opportunities that would be made available through applying to out-of-district programs, and how beneficial they would be to James.  Eventually, James’ mother agreed to let the district send applications to various programs. One program in particular seemed very interested in James.

Although James was resistant during the intake, his mother really warmed up to the program.  There was a lot of staff, it was a refreshingly calm environment, and they engaged in a positive behavior intervention style of discipline.  They decided to give it a chance.

Since starting at this school, James has already earned the prestigious award of “Student of the Week” and was ranked as Gold Status for his outstanding behavior.  He now loves school, and is up early and excited to get to school on time every morning.